By Debby Woodin
The Joplin Globe
JOPLIN, Mo. — A woman was injured Sunday in a fire at a vacant, dilapidated house at 1602 S. Byers Ave. The house was scheduled for demolition by the city of Joplin.
The Joplin Fire Department was dispatched to the house at 8:26 p.m. Sunday after the fire was reported to the 911 center.
Upon arrival, firefighters saw smoke and flames on the second floor and began a search. They found the 40-year-old woman on the second floor. She was rescued by firefighters who accessed the second floor through a window.
After the woman was rescued, no one else was found in the house. She was taken to Mercy Hospital by METS ambulance.
Assistant Fire Chief Andy Nimmo said there was substantial fire damage to the second floor of the structure. He did not have the woman’s identity and said he could not release it because of regulations regarding medical records, he said. Nimmo said the woman was suffering from moderate burns and smoke inhalation.
The Joplin fire marshal investigated the blaze and reported that he could not rule out the burning candles as the source of the fire. Nimmo said it has not been determined whether the candles were being used for light or heat or both. It is believed the woman was inside the deteriorated house because she was homeless.
The fire department responded with six trucks and 21 personnel and was assisted by the Joplin Police Department and METS. The fire was under control within 30 minutes.
The house, which had been declared a dangerous building by the city’s Building Board of Appeals in July, was demolished Monday, Nimmo said.
The assistant fire chief praised the work of the fire crew in responding to the emergency and rescuing the woman without further injury to her or the firefighters.
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